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Business Plan

The following is an excerpt/overview of the WSP business plan.

Click here to download the entire business plan (the document can be viewed in Adobe Acrobat Reader)

A sustainable, high-quality water supply is essential for economic development and enhanced quality of life in Arizona. Competing demands for water due to unprecedented population growth, emerging contaminants, high-tech industry needs, ecological concerns about habitat and species conservation, drought, and the uncertainties of climate change all contribute to the growing need for improved water science, new technologies, and the tools and policies for real-world application.

The Water Sustainability Program (WSP) is creating a collaborative environment to leverage the UA's recognized excellence in water expertise to enhance water research, education and outreach that will produce exportable knowledge and techniques that benefit Arizona and have global application. The focus of WSP is to enhance opportunities for students, build new education and research programs, and partner with industry to stimulate economic development. The WSP Business Plan was approved and a funding request of $3.2M/yr granted by ABOR, in early 2006, to further the outcomes of the WSP for a second five year period.

WSP's vision is to be a world leader in interdisciplinary, cutting-edge water resources research and in applying results to resolve water resource challenges at the state, national, and international level.

WSP's goal is to strengthen research, education, and outreach efforts in the water resources area at the University of Arizona to help ensure a sustainable, high-quality water supply for economic development and enhanced quality of life for all of Arizona. WSP will accomplish this goal by working to:

WSP is leveraging its strengths in academia, research, and environmental technology industries to create several outcomes that include: (a) practical education for grades K-12 to create general awareness of issues, problems, and career-related training; (b) internationally recognized research and technology transfer initiatives; (c) a thriving industry cluster, which includes both private sector and public sector entities, supported by a skilled workforce that is educated at the University of Arizona; and (d) stronger relationships across disciplines within the University of Arizona, which will result in research innovations to create new business initiatives. These efforts build on the extensive expertise among over 300 UA faculty and staff in 10 colleges and 60 departments and help to promote UA as a national and global leader in research, technology development, and economic development.

WSP will continue to pursue these goals and address water quality, supply and policy issues in Arizona through a competitive grants program; a student fellowship program; a recruitment and research initiative; directed interdisciplinary initiatives; education and outreach programs; and the activities of the four founding water centers.